Finding Your Voice with Singer-Songwriter Chase Bell
“The longest 18 inches any human can travel is from their head to their heart.”
THIS EPISODE IS SO SPECIAL. I was joined by award-winning singer/songwriter, composer, & producer Chase Bell and I was blown away by his poetic perspective & witty wisdom as he shared his story of resilience with me.
It's often said that children are some of the most resilient beings, in that they tend to spring from challenge quickly. But there are so many other strengths that children have that we tend to shed as we get older... and maybe some of them are worth keeping.
For example, as Chase shows me how the chords of his new song conveys 'childish confidence' without even using lyrics, we start discussing how children have a vision that is unobstructed by obstacles. They aren't afraid to fail, to look silly, or to be anything but exactly who they are, simply because they don't know any other way.
Some may call this naivety, but I think it's actually resilience in its truest form. The imagination of a child is totally uninhibited because their creativity knows no bounds. And since we already know that there's a link between resilience, creativity, & innovation, it's not surprising at all that children are known to be particularly resilient people!
As Chase so wisely said, "Wherever I go, my heart is going to lead me." I hope your heart leads you to this episode of Flourish or Fold ⇣
On the episode, we talk about:
How challenges help you progress on your journey (4:23)
The aspects of songwriting that are timeless (8:23)
The importance of self love along the creative journey (14:51)
How to find your voice (21:29)
The danger of self-comparison (29:48)
How the process of artist collaboration works (35:23)
Chase shares a song (43:20)
About Chase Bell:
With the upcoming release of his new EP, Where My Heart Leads, Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Chase Bell is primed to take his place as one of the premier pop artists of the day. The nine cuts on the set brim with instantly catchy hooks, rousing vocals and brilliantly evocative narratives that easily lodge their way in the thicket of listeners’ senses – and stay there.
Growing up in New Jersey, his house was filled with music – his mother sang cabaret in New York, and he learned his first guitar chords under the tutelage of his musician uncle Vinnie. “Playing music was the most natural thing in the world for me,” he says. “It wasn’t just this fun thing that I did to pass the time. It provided me with a direction, a way I could express whatever I was thinking and feeling.”
Becoming proficient on guitar and piano, Bell absorbed classic rock – Hendrix and Led Zeppelin were his two biggies – and he soon began absorbing the sounds of newer bands like Coldplay. After the necessary period of emulation, he started to write his own songs, his first steps toward establishing a singular musical identity. “Like anybody, I had to write a bunch of bad songs till I had some good ones,” he recalls. “But I fell in love with writing my own material quickly. It became this device that allowed me to pinpoint how I was feeling about something, and the more I wrote, the more I understood what I was going through. It’s like therapy in a way, and the more you do it, the better the results.”
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